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| Bhadarwahi | |
|---|---|
| Bhadrawahi | |
| 𑚡𑚛𑚶𑚤𑚦𑚭𑚩𑚯भद्रवाहीبھدرواہی | |
 Bhadarwahi written in Takri, Devanagari and Perso-arabic scripts | |
| Native to | Jammu and Kashmir,Himachal Pradesh |
| Region | Bhadarwah,Doda district |
| Ethnicity | Bhadarwahis |
Native speakers | 120,000 (2011)[1] |
| Dialects |
|
| Devanagari,Takri,Perso-Arabic script | |
| Language codes | |
| ISO 639-3 | bhd |
| Glottolog | bhad1241 |
| ELP | Bhadrawahi |
Bhadarwahi (Bhadrawahi) is an indigenous language of the Indian subcontinent, belonging to the Western Pahari group. It is spoken by the Bhadarwahi people in the Bhadarwah region ofJammu and Kashmir, India. The language traces its origins toSanskrit, the ancient and indigenous linguistic heritage of the region, and has evolved naturally within the cultural context of the area.
The name Bhadarwahi can be understood either in a narrow sense as referring to the dialect, locally known as Bhiḍlāi, native to the Bhadarwah valley, or in a broader sense to cover the group of related dialects spoken in the wider region where Bhadarwahi proper is used as alingua franca. In addition to Bhadarwahi proper, this group also includesBhalesi, and Khasali (Khashali) dialect.[2] TheChurahi language is closely related.
The name of the language is spelt in theTakri as𑚡𑚛𑚤𑚦𑚭𑚩𑚯. Variants includeBhaderwahi (𑚡𑚛𑚲𑚤𑚦𑚭𑚩𑚯),[3]Baderwali (𑚠𑚛𑚲𑚤𑚦𑚭𑚥𑚯),Bhadri (𑚡𑚛𑚤𑚯), Badrohi (𑚠𑚛𑚶𑚤𑚴𑚩𑚯),Bhadlayi (𑚡𑚛𑚥𑚭𑚣𑚯), andBhadlai (𑚡𑚛𑚥𑚭𑚃).
| Front | Central | Back | |
|---|---|---|---|
| High | iː | uː | |
| Lower High | i | u | |
| Mid | eeː | oː | |
| Lower Mid | ə | o | |
| Low | ɑː |
| Bilabial | Dental | Alveolar | Postalveolar | Retroflex | Palatal | Velar | Glottal | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Nasal | m | n | ɳ | ɲ | |||||
| Stop | voiceless | p | t̪ | ʈ | t͡ʃ | k | |||
| aspirated | pʰ | t̪ʰ | ʈʰ | t͡ʃʰ | kʰ | ||||
| voiced | b | d̪ | ɖ | d͡ʒ | ɡ | ||||
| breathy | bʱ | d̪ʱ | ɖʱ | d͡ʒʱ | ɡʱ | ||||
| Fricative | voiceless | s | ʃ | ççʰ | h | ||||
| voiced | zzʱ | ||||||||
| Approximant | w | l | j | ||||||
| Trill | r | ||||||||
| Flap orTap | ɽ | ||||||||
According to Masica (1991) there are a set of lateral retroflex affricates/ʈ͡ꞎɖ͡𝼅ɖ͡𝼅ʱ/ from old /Cr/ clusters.[5]
The language is commonly calledBhaderwahi.[citation needed] Some speakers may call it a dialect ofDogri.[6] The language has no official status. It is classified by theUnited Nations Education, Scientific and Cultural Organisation (UNESCO) as "definitely endangered," meaning that many Bhadarwahi parents are not teaching it to their children and the number of native speakers is decreasing. Other languages, such as Kashmiri and Urdu/Hindi, are being spoken in the home in its place. This is a natural human tendency to pick up the language of people perceived as better off economically and/or socially.[7]
A daily headline news program is broadcast by anews outletThe Chenab Times inSarazi and Bhadarwahi languages to promote them.[8][9]
